A review by ravensandlace
Raven Wakes The Dawn by Laine Stambaugh

4.0

Title: Raven Wakes the Dawn

Author: Laine Stambaugh

Genre: Historical Fiction

Format: ebook

Series: The Heartstone Trilogy (#1)

Star Rating: 4 stars

A special thank you goes to Niche Reads for providing me with a copy of this book. Please know that this does not influence my rating or thoughts on the book itself.

tw: child abandonment, alcohol, toxic relationship, death, epilepsy, animal death, birthing scene, infant death, kidnapping, hanging, stabbing, alcoholism, bullying, child abuse, domestic abuse

I will be the first to admit. I have yet to learn about Scottish history. It’s not that I don’t want to learn anything about Scottland, it’s simply never come up. I have heard of Druids but that is because I have a boyfriend who plays World of Warcraft and I think a Druid is a class on there. So when I was emailed about this book, I said absolutely! I enjoyed this book quite a bit considering I do not know much about Scottish lore. 

There were two main characters: Marsaili and Davina. Marsaili is a Druid, so she worships in the old ways, she’s a healer and my lord, she was so incredibly naive. I know that she was raised by Druids and believed the best in everyone. But holy cow, she believed every single thing someone said to her without thinking about whether or not this person truly meant well or just wanted to hurt her. It drove me crazy that she couldn’t protect her heart. She did eventually grow a back bone but it took a minute. 

Davina was the other POV. She got some page time but honestly, she didn’t get enough. We learned about her mostly through the eyes of Marsaili. And she made Davina look like a spoiled brat. If we got her POV more, my thoughts about her would be different. I understand she had some trauma but it wasn’t truly explored as much as I wanted it to be.  

As for the plot, it was good but it didn’t blow me out of the water. I would honestly say it was more of a character driven story with some side quests. I felt like the book was more about Marsaili and her growth as a person. I am interested to see where the other books will go because this one did end pretty nicely and I’m not sure where else Marsaili’s story could go. 

Overall, this was a pretty enjoyable book. It was easy to read and despite it being over 400 pages, I breezed through it. Marsaili was an interesting character who did eventually grow on me, she just took her sweet time. I learned a bit more about Scottish history and I’m intrigued enough to want to learn more. Overall, I recommend this book especially if you are interested in Scottish history.